nyccheaptravel.com

Category: Free

  • Visit the Chrysler Building Lobby

    The Chrysler Building’s Art Deco Lobby

    New York City – August 26, 2011: Interior lobby of the Chrysler Building. Copyright: sepavo / 123RF Stock Photo

    Most people are familiar with the exterior of the Chrysler Building, with its Art Deco design and iconic terraced crown and spire, but did you know that the building’s lobby is also an Art Deco gem?

    The lobby is the only part of the building open to the public, and it is open from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., Monday – Friday. There is no fee to visit.

    Keep in mind that the Chrysler Building still an office building and many people go to and from  work there every day. You’ll have the best opportunity to quietly enjoy the lobby if you avoid the morning, lunchtime and evening rush hours.

     

    Interior Architecture

    Once inside the lobby, you’ll find red marble walls, marble floors, striking Art Deco light fixtures, and some very nice Art Deco elevator doors decorated in an abstract lotus pattern.

    Chrysler Building

    Don’t forget to look up while you’re visiting the lobby. There’s a spectacular mural by artist Edward Turnbull on the ceiling. The mural, entitled Transport and Human Endeavor, depicts various views of workers and machinery, buildings, airplanes, and other symbols of progress.

     

    Exterior Architecture

    The Chrysler Building is easily identifiable by the stepped tier crown and spire at the top of the tower. Eagle gargoyles decorate the building on the level below the crown.

    When the Chrysler Building was constructed, it was the tallest building in New York City, but lost that claim when the Empire State Building was completed less than a year later.

     

    Location

    The Chrysler Building is located in Midtown Manhattan, near Grand Central Terminal.

    The street address is 405 Lexington Avenue.

     

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  • NYC Department of Public Records Visitor Center at Surrogate’s Court

    Department of Public Records Visitor Center Exhibits

    Copyright: vikalipa / 123RF Stock Photo

    See exhibitions featuring items from the New York City Municipal Archives and Municipal Library at the NYC Department of Records Visitor Center. The public records exhibitions feature items from within the department’s vast collection of documents, focusing on specific aspects of New York City history. Past exhibitions have included an Ed Koch exhibit, The Unbuilt City, Women Make History, Lomex, and Little Syria.

    The visitor center is located in the Surrogate’s Court building in Lower Manhattan. The Surrogate’s Court was originally constructed as the Hall of Records, opening in 1907. The structure now houses the Department of Records, Municipal Archives, the Surrogate’s Court (handles probate and estate proceedings), and the Department of Cultural Affairs.

    The Visitor Center is free and open to the public Monday – Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m..

    If you have family history in New York City, the Municipal Archives are located in the same building and a great source of genealogical reference materials.

    The Department of Public Records & Information Services publishes a blog featuring items within the archives and maintains an online gallery of thousands of historic images from it’s collections.

    New York Today: Treasures of Chambers Street – a New York Times article, with video, about the Department of Records archives and exhibits.

     

    Surrogate’s Court Building

    The Surrogate’s Court building was designed at the height of the City Beautiful movement, which focused on monumental grandeur. Built in the Beaux Arts style, the structure has an ornate granite exterior and an elaborate marble lobby with a grand staircase and a series of arched balconies under a vaulted ceiling with mosaic inlays and domed skylights. The lobby is a popular site for special events and has been used as a filming location for several movies and television shows.

    Take a look at Surrogate’s Court/Hall of Records video below. It’s part of the New New Landmarks Conservancy’s Tourist in Your Own Town series.[spacer height=”20px”]

    Tourist In Your Own Town #29 – Surrogate’s Court / Hall of Records from New York Landmarks Conservancy on Vimeo.

     

    Location

    The address for the Surrogate’s Court Building and Department of Records Visitor Center is 31 Chambers Street. The building is located at the corner of Chambers and Centre Streets.

    There’s no exterior sign for the visitor’s center, but the building, with it’s columns, statuary, and mansard roof, is hard to miss. Tweed Courthouse and City Hall are nearby.

     

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  • China Institute Gallery Free Thursday Evenings

    Free Thursday Evening Admission to the China Institute Gallery

    Admission to the China Institute Gallery is free on Thursdays from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.. The regular admission fee for the gallery, located in Lower Manhattan, is $8 for adults, and $4 for Seniors and Students.

     

    The China Institute Gallery

    The gallery showcases traditional and contemporary Chinese art and culture.

    Two major exhibitions are presented at the gallery each year.

    Information about current and upcoming exhibitions is available at the China Institute website.

     

    Location

    The China Institute Gallery is locate in Lower Manhattan at 100 Washington Street.

     

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  • Jane’s Walk NYC

    Jane’s Walk is a weekend of free, citizen-lead, walks organized in honor of pioneering urbanist and activist Jane Jacobs,

    The 2017 Jane’s Walk event will be held May 5 – 7.

    Walks cover a wide variety of themes and are held throughout the city. Discussion and participation is encouraged on Jane’s Walks. Most walks are repeated several times over the weekend.

    There are tours the focus on architecture, art, nature, history, heritage, and more.

    See a list of available walks. You can sort the list by date, theme, area, and accessibility.

    Jacobs’ book The Death and Life of Great American Cities shook up the world of urban planning by focusing on the benefits of higher density, mixed-use, pedestrian-friendly development that creates lively, diverse neighborhoods.  See Jane Jacobs’ Ten Big Ideas.

    The New York City walks are organized by the Municipal Art Socity of New York, and organization that promotes intelligent urban planning, design, and preservation through education, dialogue, and advocacy.

     

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  • Waves of Tradition Festival at Brookfield Place

    Free World Music and Dance at Brookfield Place

    Waves of Tradition is a curated week-long (May 1 – 5, 2017) celebration of New York City and the waves of immigrant cultures that make up its rich history.

    Each day focuses on a different part of the world: West Africa, Japan, Ireland, the Middle East, and Latin America.  Artists will tell their stories through music and dance each afternoon and evening, with a culminating Friday night concert.

    The events take place a Brookfield Place (230 Vesey Street, near the World Trade Center), and are free to attend. Performances are at 12:30 p.m. & 5:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 12:30 p.m. & 7:30 p.m. on Friday.

    See the schedule of events.

     

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  • Free Apple Store Events


    The Apple Stores in New York City have more than just cool gadgets to offer, they also feature regular free events.

    Events at the stores include appearances by actors, writers, photographers, and other presenters in the entertainment, publishing, and tech industries.

    Events are free, you just need to reserve a spot through the RSVP system on the stores’ websites.

    Most of the big events are at the SoHo store, but you can check the events list at each store to see what’s scheduled.

    NYC Apple store locations are SoHo, Fifth Avenue, West 14th Street, Upper West Side, World Trade Center, Grand Central, and Upper East Side.

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  • Night at the Museums. Free Lower Manhattan Museum Admissions

    Free Lower Manhattan Museum Admissions

    Federal Hall in Lower Manhattan

    Each June, the annual Night at the Museums event provides free admission to museums and cultural sites in Lower Manhattan.

    All the venues are located in Lower Manhattan and within walking distance of each other.

    The 2017 event is June 20th from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

    Participating venues for 2017 are the African Burial Grounds National Monument, China Institute, Federal Hall National Memorial, Fraunces Tavern Museum, Museum of American Finance, Museum of Jewish Heritage, National Archives of New York City, National Museum of the American Indian, National September 11 Memorial Museum, 9/11 Tribute Center, NYC Municipal Archives, Poets House, The Skyscraper Museum, and South Street Seaport Museum.

    Lower Manhattan Tours also offers free tours during the event. Advance reservations are required for the tours.

    Several of the participating venues have free admission all the time (African Burial Grounds National Monument, Federal Hall National Monument, NYC Municipal Archives, and National Museum of the American Indian), so if I want to make a day of visiting these Lower Manhattan sites, you could visit those first and leave the ones that normally charge admission for the 4:00 – 8:00 free admission time.

    Visit the official event website for details.

     

    Location

    The participating venues are all located in Lower Manhattan. See a map of venues.

     

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  • Summerstage – Free Performances in all Five Boroughs

    SummerStage

    SummerStage is an annual festival of (mostly) free performances spread out across all five boroughs. The events run from May to September, but most are scheduled in June, July, and August.

    Most SummerStage evens are free. Each year, however, a few of the concerts by big-name acts are ticketed events. Those are usually held at Rumsey Playfield in Central Park. The funds from the ticketed events help support all the free events held throughout the festival.

    For the free events, admission is first-come-first served and closes when the venue’s capacity is reached.

    See the full SummerStage schedule at the CityParks Foundation website.

     

    2017 SummerStage

    SummerStage 2017 includes 150 music, dance, and comedy acts at 15 parks throughout the five boroughs of New York City.

    Performers scheduled for 2017 include Govt Mule (ticketed), Mavis Staples (free), George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic (free), Elvis Costello & The Imposters (ticketed), Umphrey’s McGee (ticketed), Regina Spektor (ticketed), Taj Mahal and Keb Mo (free), GZA (free), and Digable Planets (free).

     

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  • Books Beneath the Bridge. Free Book Reading Events at Brooklyn Bridge Park

    Author Events at Brooklyn Bridge Park

    Here’s a great way for book fans to spend a summer evening. The Books Beneath the Bridge Series brings authors to Brooklyn Bridge Park for free book events with readings, Q&A, and book signings.

    Books Beneath the Bridge takes place on the Granite Prospect steps at Brooklyn Bridge Park. Enjoy the book readings and enjoy a great view of the Brooklyn Bridge and the lower Manhattan skyline.

    There are six Monday evening events scheduled each season during the months of July and August, Each event is curated by a local, independent bookstore. Start time is 7:00 p.m.

    Please visit the Books Beneath the Bridge page at the Brooklyn Bridge Park for details and program updates.

    2017 Books Beneath the Bridge Schedule:

    • July 10 – Freebird Bookstore – Erica Wagner, author of Chief Engineer, talks about Washington Roebling and the building of the Brooklyn Bridge.
    • July 17 – Powerhouse Arena – Featuring Hannah Tinti and her second novel The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley, and Sarah Gerard with her newest essay collection Sunshine State. Readings, followed by audience Q&A and book signing.
    • July 24 – Greenlight Bookstore – a special summer outdoor edition of our quarterly Greenlight Poetry Salon, hosted and curated by Angel Nafis
    • July 31 – WORD – Lisa Ko will read from her novel The Leavers, which won the 2016 PEN/Bellweather Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction. Rakesh Satyal, the Lambda Award-winning author of Blue Boy, who will read from his most recent novel No One Can Pronounce My Name.
    • August 7 – Community Bookstore Park Slope – Jill Eisenstadt reads from Swell, a darkly funny new novel about a New York family, a conversion of faith, and a haunted house in Rockaway.
    • August 14 – Books are Magic – Jenny Zhang, with her first story collection, Sour Heart, and Alissa Nutting with her second novel, Made for Love. 

     

    Location

    The Books Beneath the Bridge events are held at the Granite Prospect steps on Pier 1 in Brooklyn Bridge Park. The steps, constructed with stone salvaged from the reconstruction of the Roosevelt Island Bridge, provide seating with a great view of the river.

    You can get to Brooklyn Bridge Park from Manhattan via the East River Ferry or New York Water Taxi.

    See directions to Brooklyn Bridge Park via subway and bus.

     

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  • Free Shakespeare in the Park

    Free Shakespeare in Central Park

     

    View of the Delacorte Theater from Belvedere Castle
    View of the Delacorte Theater from Belvedere Castle

    Shakespeare in the Park is an annual event, with free plays produced by The Public Theater staged at the outdoor stage at Central Park’s Delacorte Theater. Two plays are presented each summer. The productions often feature well-known actors and directors.

    Shakespeare in the Park is free to attend, but you can’t just walk up to the door and get in. This is a very popular event and tickets aren’t necessarily easy to get. You’ll either need to wait in line or try your luck with the ticket lottery.

    All shows start at 8:00 p.m. The folks at Shakespeare in the Park take the concept of “the show must go on” pretty seriously. Here’s a quote from their website regarding weather, “We will never cancel a performance before it is scheduled to begin. Rain at 7:30pm may clear by 8:00pm, so it is best to always assume the show will perform as scheduled. In the event of rain or severe weather, the start of the performance may be delayed; however, the performance will begin as soon as it is possible to do so. Performances may also pause for sudden changes in weather, but will resume as soon as weather permits.” You can’t use umbrellas in the theater, so if the weather is iffy, bring some rain gear.

     

    How to Get Tickets for Shakespeare in the Park

    Here are five ways you can get free tickets.

    • You can wait in line (often a long line) at the Delecorte Theater on the day of the performance. The tickets are distributed at noon, on a first-come-first-served basis. Each person age 5 and older can get up to two tickets, while supplies last. Some people start lining up before the park opens at 6:00 a.m.
    • You can wait in line at one of the alternative ticket voucher distribution locations throughout the season. These alternative distribution sites change daily and are primarily located outside of Manhattan. See the boroughs ticket distribution schedule.
    • You can try the in-person lottery at the Public Theater downtown. A limited number of vouchers are available through an in-person lottery held  at the Public Theater’s downtown facility on the day of the performance. The address is 425 Lafayette Square at Astor Place. Sign-up for the lottery begins in the Lobby of The Public at 11:30 a.m.. The lottery will be drawn at 12:00 p.m (noon). Each entrant (age 5+) if selected, is allowed two (2) vouchers, and each voucher is good for one ticket. Those selected must redeem the voucher(s) for ticket(s) between 5:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. at the Delacorte Theater Box Office. Vouchers are only valid until 7:30 p.m. for performances on the day they are issued. Please visit the Public Theater website to verify details.
    • Or, you can enter the virtual ticket lottery online to try to get tickets. You can enter the lottery between midnight and noon on the day of the performance and you’ll receive an email after noon letting you know if you were selected to receive tickets.
    • The last-minute option is to try the standby line at the Delacorte. The standby line starts forming after the last tickets for that day’s show are distributed. Unclaimed tickets are distributed, one per person, if available.

    See the Tickets page at the Shakespeare in the Park website for details.

     

    Location

    Shakespeare in the Park productions are held in Central Park’s Delacorte Theater, an outdoor amphitheater located mid-park at 80th Street.

     

    2017 Season

    The 2017 Shakespeare in the Park productions are Julius Caesar and A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

    May 23 – June 18, 2017 – Julius Caesar. A contemporary rendition starring House of Cards cast members Corey Stoll and Elizabeth Marvel, plus Tony Award winner Nikki James and Pulizer Prize winning playwright Stephen Adly Guirgis.

    July 11 – August 13, 2017 – A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Directed by Lear deBessonet. Cast includes Broadway actors Annaleigh Ashford (Sunday in the Park with George) and Danny Burstein (Fiddler on the Roof).

    All performances begin at 8:00 p.m..

     

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